MCPS - Middle School Magnet Consortium

[Anonymous]

anyone have any experiences in getting into MCPS' middle school magnet consortium? was it worth it? we are out of the consortium so if we get accepted, we would be using the central stop school bus option but just trying to plan if this is all worth it in the end or not.

our DD will be entering middle school next school year and we're interested on hearing from any families who attended the magnet program through Argyle, Loiederman, or Parkland.

[Anonymous]

If you live outside of the cachement areas, you have very little chance of getting accepted. So don't place your hopes on getting in if that's the case. Especially if your child gets good grades, their home middle school will not want to lose your kid to one of the magnets.

[Anonymous]

We are out of consortium and our child's experience at Parkland has definitely been worth it. It's a long bus ride, but he loves the school and we have been very pleased with his experience there. It's actually been the highlight of MCPS for us.

The only downside from our perspective is that there are not activity buses for out of consortium, so that can complicate things in the afternoon if they're participating in after school clubs or sports. But if you can swing that, I highly recommend the school.

[Anonymous]

You have a chance of getting in, so if you’re interested, it doesn’t cost anything to apply.

Our kid is out-of-consortium and likes their school. Kids are nice, great course offerings, well-run school. There is a commute but it’s worth it. There are a lot of parents and students at our school who, like us, appreciate the course offerings. If you want a UMC environment, this is not the place for you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you live outside of the cachement areas, you have very little chance of getting accepted. So don't place your hopes on getting in if that's the case. Especially if your child gets good grades, their home middle school will not want to lose your kid to one of the magnets.

NP. So the lottery isn’t randomized?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you live outside of the cachement areas, you have very little chance of getting accepted. So don't place your hopes on getting in if that's the case. Especially if your child gets good grades, their home middle school will not want to lose your kid to one of the magnets.

NP. So the lottery isn’t randomized?

Students in the cachement have to go to a school, so they have priority. I think each MS has 100 seats for out of consortium.

[Anonymous]

We're at Loiederman and love it. Also out-of-bounds, and using a combination of carpools and central-stop bus for transportation. Would definitely do it all over again for our artsy kid. DC already has more coursework and more experience than most kids get in HS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you live outside of the cachement areas, you have very little chance of getting accepted. So don't place your hopes on getting in if that's the case. Especially if your child gets good grades, their home middle school will not want to lose your kid to one of the magnets.

NP. So the lottery isn’t randomized?

It is, but they prioritize in-bound kids so the odds for out-of-bound kids are just way worse. I think I saw someone say you have like a 10-15% chance of getting it if you're out-of-bounds.

[Anonymous]

Loiederman was the best for ny child. If your child is interested in dance, film, music or theater or art its worth it. The teachers are amazing and its a place where the kids have a peer group that is connected to their interests. The theater department is particularly strong and they csn get high school fine arts elective credit in 8th grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you live outside of the cachement areas, you have very little chance of getting accepted. So don't place your hopes on getting in if that's the case. Especially if your child gets good grades, their home middle school will not want to lose your kid to one of the magnets.

NP. So the lottery isn’t randomized?

It is, but they prioritize in-bound kids so the odds for out-of-bound kids are just way worse. I think I saw someone say you have like a 10-15% chance of getting it if you're out-of-bounds.

You misunderstand how this works. There are 80 seats per grade for out of consortium students at each of these 3 middle schools.

OP, our experience has been that most out of consortium kids leave after 6th grade. Their families don't realize exactly how poor the school is or how watered down some of the magnet courses are. For example, BOE many Loeiderman kids make it into Honors and Junior All State Band/Orchestra/chorus?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you live outside of the cachement areas, you have very little chance of getting accepted. So don't place your hopes on getting in if that's the case. Especially if your child gets good grades, their home middle school will not want to lose your kid to one of the magnets.

NP. So the lottery isn’t randomized?

It is, but they prioritize in-bound kids so the odds for out-of-bound kids are just way worse. I think I saw someone say you have like a 10-15% chance of getting it if you're out-of-bounds.

You misunderstand how this works. There are 80 seats per grade for out of consortium students at each of these 3 middle schools.

OP, our experience has been that most out of consortium kids leave after 6th grade. Their families don't realize exactly how poor the school is or how watered down some of the magnet courses are. For example, BOE many Loeiderman kids make it into Honors and Junior All State Band/Orchestra/chorus?

You sound jealous and not too bright.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you live outside of the cachement areas, you have very little chance of getting accepted. So don't place your hopes on getting in if that's the case. Especially if your child gets good grades, their home middle school will not want to lose your kid to one of the magnets.

NP. So the lottery isn’t randomized?

It is, but they prioritize in-bound kids so the odds for out-of-bound kids are just way worse. I think I saw someone say you have like a 10-15% chance of getting it if you're out-of-bounds.

You misunderstand how this works. There are 80 seats per grade for out of consortium students at each of these 3 middle schools.

OP, our experience has been that most out of consortium kids leave after 6th grade. Their families don't realize exactly how poor the school is or how watered down some of the magnet courses are. For example, BOE many Loeiderman kids make it into Honors and Junior All State Band/Orchestra/chorus? [/quote]

I can't speak for instrumental (where achievement is really a function of private study, not school), but the high-performing numbers for choral/vocal are growing every year. The choral director is amazing, and so is the drama program. We were _not_ impressed by a lot of what we saw at the high-school open houses - in many cases Loiederman was as good or better.

And no, the magnet courses are not watered down, and neither is the mathematics. And no, the out-of-bounds kids don't all leave. The ones we knew who left went back to their home schools for friend reasons. One of the great things about the MSMC is that you _can_ leave if the fit isn't right. You're maintaining options all the way through.

[Anonymous]

We have a 6th grader at Loiederman and came from an out of boundary ES which is a W feeder. People thought we were crazy for going to LMS. We have been pleasantly surprised by the quality of the teachers, staff and courses. My artsy kid takes all the advanced courses she would have done at her out of boundary home MS and also has great elective options. LMS teachers are very supportive and really want to be there teaching in the arts magnet. The kids are like minded and there seems to be way less bullying than expected in MS. We are so happy with our choice so far!

[Anonymous]

+1

[Anonymous]

We chose Parkland over our home scho Westland and it was an incredible experience for my STEM kid. The teachers and administrators are A+. Everyone cares A LOT about the kids. We would absolutely do it again.